5s And Continuous Improvement
If you really want 5s to work for you, then plan on making 5s a continued part of your strategy. 5s is not a one-time effort.
"Continuous Improvement" is a long term, essentially never-ending approach to workplace organization through incremental changes in processes in order to improve efficiency and quality. 5S is not about tossing out the trash, cleaning up the warehouse, and you're done. The power in the 5S program comes in the ongoing, continual daily effort to improve. 5S is a cyclical methodology that requires diligence to sustain the continuous cycle of improvement. Even though efforts to implement the first four steps in the 5s program may be successful and show positive results, it is the fifth step, "Shitsuke" or "Sustain", which leads to the greatest benefits. Sustaining all the steps in the 5s cycle is key to success and requires discipline and commitment to the program. When a company has a commitment to "continuous improvement" then increased efficiency, reduced waste, high quality goods, greater productivity and growth will be the by-product not only for today, but for the future.
